Hello again. Today we are going to learn about blues around the world. I mentioned in my previous article "View From the Stage: Small World” that people all over the world love American Music, especially the blues. I discovered this while writing to some friends in Denmark. They had causally mentioned that they went to see a local blues band and I scoffed to myself "Blues Band Indeed! - I'm from Chicago what would they know about the Blues". Nevertheless, I went to the bands web site and was surprised to find out just how good they were. I don't know how well they spoke English, but the knew the international language of the Blues, and listening to them you would have thought they were born and raised on the South Side of Chicago. They Rocked!

I was watching a National Geographic Special not long ago; South Africa. Some poor guy was hollowing out a two foot chunk of log—for days with a makeshift tool. When he had perfected this thing, he and his buddies climbed forty feet up in a tree with a few feet of rope to tie it up there. Then they patiently sat and waited for days—for bees to show up. If no bees

showed up in a couple of weeks they would scale the tree again, bring it down, search for a more suitable tree for the bees, and wait once again. He was a honey farmer. If he got a cash crop of honey, he could afford a wife. If not, he would be found waiting under a tree for bees.

This my friends is the root of the blues. Can you hear it? Can you see it?

My hive ain't got no honey 'cause I got no queen bee My hive ain't got no honey Empty nest up in the tree If I don't get me some honey, Ain't no woman gonna marry me.

Cheers! Until Next time

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